


Realisation

by MaddieandChimney



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-12
Updated: 2020-05-12
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:15:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24151921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaddieandChimney/pseuds/MaddieandChimney
Summary: She has been free for a long time, she had been safe too, but right then was the first time she felt any remains of the life she had once had and the person she had once been, leave.Major spoiler warning for 3x18!
Relationships: Maddie Buckley/Howie "Chimney" Han
Comments: 1
Kudos: 26
Collections: Madney One-Shots





	Realisation

**Author's Note:**

> How amazing was the finale?!? Please be aware this contains major spoilers.

The party was in full swing, everyone was having a good time, there was laughter and the drinks were flowing. Most importantly, Buck appeared to still be standing and in one piece. The brunette grinned as she turned around to look at her boyfriend, the smell hitting her first, “Woah, that smells terrible.” Her nose scrunched up and she gently pushed his arm back to get the plate further from her, that unsettling feeling in her stomach returning.

Howie looked at her confused, and slightly offended as he slowly dropped the forkful of food he had been about to feed her, “It’s the salmon thing you that you loved the last time you had it! I can’t believe you’re still not feeling well, have you seen a doctor?” There was concern in his voice and the realisation hit her.Maddie had been feeling generally unwell for a few weeks – tired, a little queasy and overly sensitive to smells – but she hadn’t thought much of it. The thought hadn’t even crossed her mind, until right then. 

“Oh my god,” The moment the thought was there, the possibility of her being pregnant, she had to find out, “We have to go!” She could already feel the excitement bubbling up inside of her but she tried not to show it, they hadn’t discussed it in so long and even when they had, so much had changed since. 

“What? Why?” Neither of them really wanted to leave the party, they had been having a good time but Maddie knew this was more important, she had to know and she had to know right then. The desperation was clear enough in her voice when she spoke again, “Right now!” It was enough for him to put the plate down so he could take her hand. 

She didn’t give him time to say goodbye to anyone, or to even let anyone know they were heading off extremely early, instead, she pulled him through the crowd and avoided any and all eye contact with anyone who would think to stop them. She was on a mission and it hadn’t clicked inside her boyfriends head just yet. “We need to go to the chemist, and then home. Are you okay to drive? How much did you have to drink?” Her words were rushed, her heart was thumping and Howie was just staring at her, a permanently confused expression on his face as he tried to catch up to wherever Maddie’s head was at. 

“I had a beer…” He trailed off, his head shaking, trying to wrap his head around what was going on right then. He took the car keys from his pocket, running through the symptoms Maddie had been experiencing, trying to figure out what she had realised when he offered her some salmon. 

He was quiet the entire journey, but he could sense the nervous energy from his girlfriend as she shook her leg, her hand subconsciously playing with her necklace, staring out the window. When he pulled up outside the Chemist, she was quick to unbuckle her seatbelt. 

His hand fell onto her arm, giving her a gentle squeeze, at some point in the ten minute drive he had jumped to the same conclusion she had but he didn’t know what to say. He wasn’t sure how he felt about the possibility of becoming a dad, a part of him wasn’t sure he wanted to get his hopes up just in case. There could be other reasons for the nausea and the sensitivity, the tiredness… there were other explanations other than the extremely obvious one that had been right in front of them. 

“Do you want me to come with you?” 

Maddie shook her head and gave him a small smile, “I’ll be quick, I promise.” And like that, she was out of the car and running towards the store. Those few minutes seemed like the longest of his life, his fingers drumming against the steering wheel. He popped another piece of gum in his mouth when he saw her heading back towards the car with a small bag in her hand. The nerves were building up with each passing second, the terrifying belief he had created a whole new life with the woman he loved was more than enough to cause his hands to shake. He took a deep breath, trying to maintain a calm exterior, knowing he couldn’t jump to any conclusions. 

If he had thought the wait in the car had been long, it was nothing compared to standing in his apartment as he paced back and forth. The moment they had entered the apartment, Maddie had practically ran to the bathroom and closed the door behind her. All sorts of things ran through his head as he waited – was she happy? Did she want to have a baby? Did she want a baby with him? Could he be a good father? 

He had finally had enough of waiting, “Anything yet?”’

“Just give me a minute!” She called out from the other side of the closed door and he couldn’t help but roll his eyes as he groaned, “It’s already been over a minute, what is taking so long?! I thought all you had to do was pee on a st-“ Any patience he had once had was gone, she had been in the bathroom for far too long and he didn’t know what to think. 

Maddie finally opened the bathroom door as he spoke, terrified of what he would say and how he was feeling. It wasn’t exactly planned or expected, they hadn’t even said they definitely wanted to be parents. But the moment she had stared at the first positive pregnancy test, a wave of hope had washed over her, it all made sense, there was no other explanation. She still took a second one just in case, she needed to be as sure as she possibly could be in that moment. She had heard Howie on the other side of the door, and she had hoped for a second it was a tone of thinly veiled excitement but she couldn’t be one hundred percent sure until she saw his face. 

She walked towards him, taking a deep breath in the hope it would give her the confidence she needed right then to look right into his eyes and really see how he felt. She was excited, she was happy and she loved him. She was finally safe enough to bring a child into the world and she hadn’t realised it until she stared at the pregnancy test, but it was something she truly wanted. 

Her hand shook as she held the first test out, her left hand still tightly gripping onto the other. He had finally stopped talking mid sentence and he was staring but he wasn’t smiling. He looked confused, he paused, “Oh my god, are you sure?” 

She had known the question would come, and so she held out the second one, with the exact same result. She wondered for a moment if she should have taken a third but she knew the answer, she had felt it the moment the realisation had come to her. She was pregnant.

A deep breath. She stepped forward, closer to him so he could look from one test the other, his mouth agape, before the acceptance kicked in. “You’re pregnant.” There was no denying it, it was right in front of them, Maddie was going to have a baby, their baby. 

“We’re pregnant.” She was quick to correct him, in the hope he would understand that she wasn’t upset, she wasn’t scared, she was overwhelmed with nothing other than complete and utter love for the man in front of her and the baby growing inside her. She didn’t want to celebrate, not until she knew he was on the same page as she was. He repeated her words back to her and she saw the light flicker in his eyes when he said it aloud. The recognition that their tiny family was about to grow, and she had never felt more ready than she had right then. 

“Yep.” Was he happy? She had her answer less than a second later when he finally grinned, and since she had found out, it was the first time she felt as though she could breathe, “We’re having a baby!?” He exclaimed, closing the small gap between them when he wrapped his arms around her and she laughed. They were having a baby. 

Neither knew how much time had passed, their arms tightly wrapped around each other, Maddie still holding onto the pregnancy tests with her face hidden in his neck. They had been a fit of laughter and tears, just holding each other as they came to terms with the new development in their relationship. Chimney had no doubts, he hadn’t even known how much he had wanted it until it became a reality.

When they finally pulled back, he took the tests from her, with just one more look until he set them on the kitchen counter, so he could pull her close once again. His lips were against hers, and she smiled, wishing she had the words to express just how much she loved him. How grateful she was for him, for their life together. When they pulled back, breathless and still amazed, his hand hesitated before resting on her stomach, “I love you, I love you so much.” 

Any fear she had once had about saying the words had dissipated, Doug was her past, a life that seemed so far away from where she was and who she was right then. Howie was her future, Howie and their baby were her future. Those three words were no longer an automatic response to an immediate threat, they were not needed to appease a man who didn’t know what real love was. 

“I love you.” Her voice didn’t waiver, her hand moved on top of his, and she beamed at him, tears in her eyes, “I love you so much, Howie. Thank you, thank you for everything.” She has been free for a long time, she had been safe too, but right then was the first time she felt any remains of the life she had once had and the person she had once been, leave. He didn’t have to say anything, she kissed him once again, her hand gently grazing along his cheekbone when she pulled back to look at him, taking in everything she could about him. 

He had once told her that he could say those words enough for the two of them, and he did, he really did. But he didn’t have to anymore, once the words had fallen from her lips, she realised she liked the way it sounded, she adored the way his eyes lit up, how he smiled when she said those three words that held more meaning behind them than she ever could have imagined. 

“We are going to be parents!” She exclaimed, giggling when he picked her up and twirled her around, the laughter overtaking the otherwise quiet apartment once again.


End file.
